Bone surgery appliance



Patented Jan. 17, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BONE SURGERYAPPLIANCE Application September 16, 1936, Serial No. 101,119

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in bone surgery appliances andpertains to the use of wires applied through the flesh and bone of afractured member of the living body for holding the bone fragments intheir proper relative positions after the fracture has been reduced andapposition of the fragments effected.

An object of the invention is to afford skeletal wires provided withintegral beads for use in conjunction with adjustable members forapplying clamping force to bone fragments of an injured member by whichthe fragments are firmly held together during convalescence withoutimpairment of circulation through the blood vessels.

Other objects and advantages of the invention are shown in theaccompanying: drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary view of an injured member partially in sectionshowing skeletal wires applied to the bone fragments and members forclamping the fragments together; and

Figs. 2 and 3 are end views respectively of the parts of a tautner of apreferred form used in the device.

An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in Fig. 1 in whichwires 33 and 34 provided with beads 353i3 respectively, are employed inconjunction with corresponding opposing members 3l38 and tautners 39 andt0. Each of the opposing members 3l--38 consists of a tube having alongitudinal bore made therein through which the corresponding wireclosely fits and has longitudinal sliding movement therein. Preferably,one end of each tube has formed thereon a bead di42, and upon theiropposite ends a radial flange 4344.

In this instance, the bone fragments 45 and iii of the injured memberll, after the fracture has been reduced in the usual manner, are securedtogether by inserting the Wires 3334 through both fragments preferablyin opposite directions and moving them to such positions that theirbeads 35-35 bear against opposite sides of the fractured bone. Theopposing members 3l38 are then placed upon the forwardly extending endsof the wires and pressed through the flesh until their beaded ends bearagainst the bone upon the sides thereof opposite the beads on thecorresponding wires. The tautners 39 and 40 are then secured upon theouter forward ends of the wires respectively, after which by turning thenuts 48-49 against the flanges t3 l l, traction is applied to the wiresand counter-traction to the opposing members, and thereby the bonefragments are held firmly clamped definitely in place between the beadson the wires and opposing members. In this instance complete internalfixation of the bone fragments is established without causing pressureupon blood vessels located about the fracture and consequentinterference with blood circulation. Preferably, the protruding ends ofthe wires are severed and the tautners and exposed ends of the wires aresuitably covered by use of plaster of Paris or bandages (not shown) toprevent interference therewith.

In applying the invention the required surgical operations are carriedout with the use of local anaesthetics, antiseptics and sterilizingmethods as in the usual practice of surgery.

Wires provided with beads may also be used for connecting bone fragmentsin cases of open surgery for establishing fixation between bonefragments with or without use of the tautners, especially where a groupof wires provided with beads are inserted in different directionsthrough adjoining bone fragments and held in place from retraction byany suitable means. The principal objective is to exert sustainedpressure of one bone fragment against another dur ing the convalescentperiod without interference with the circulatory system in the fleshsurrounding the region of the fracture.

What I claim is:

A surgical appliance for fixation of fragments of fractured bones, saidappliance consisting of a skeletal wire adapted to be projected throughsaid fragments and having a bead fixed thereon adapted to engagedirectly against one of said fragments, an opposing member constitutedof a tube disposed movably upon said wire and provided at its inner endwith a bead adapted to engage directly against the other fragment uponthat side of the bone opposite the bead on said wire, and adjustablemeans on said wire for applying relative axial movement to said wire andmember thereby to clamp said fragments together between said beads.

EARL E. LONGFELLOW.

